Wednesday night at Glenmore:
Peter, Kate, Lizzie, Nick and Sean in Radials
Race 1 : (315) not a great start - mid line, not at highly favoured barge end. Was neck in neck with Lizzie for a bit, but pulled ahead on the reach from 1 to 5. Didn't catch Peter.
Race 2 (315) Over early. Would have been a great start! I ducked the line and then worked really hard to catch people. Caught the boys easily, worked at it and caught Lizzie later. Was gaining on Peter in the last upwind by working hard at adjusting to changes in wind strength and paying attention to my ticklers.
Race 3 (3636) start/finish line an obstruction. Great start. Was kicking butt on the upwind. Pulling ahead of Peter inch by inch. I was close to Bill too. Near the windward mark I tacked. My lifejacket got caught on the boom and I got dumped! Crap! Not only was it freezing but 4 or 5 boats passed me. I got him back up and moving pretty quickly. I then spent the rest of the race trying to catch everyone that passed me when I fell in. I caught Terry (full rig) and Lizzie but I didn't catch Peter. So disappointing! I wanted to see if I could hold or build that lead on the downwind. It is possible to beat him, but I have to have a perfect race. Perfect start, smooth roundings, top boat speed.
Race 4 (6s1s6p) a downwind start. Nasty mark roundings. dinged in the head by Peter's boom. Was ahead of everyone except Seamus and Elliot, then took the last rounding too wide because of a wind shift. Peter got round tight and pulled ahead. Terry came round and prevented me from tacking. This slowed me down and threw me a bit. It took me a little to realize I hadn't put the vang on or gone block to block. In the end, pulled ahead of Terry, Bill got me by a boat length because I had to duck him just before the finish. Peter beat me no problem.
Second radial in every race. I can beat Peter, I just need to visualize the perfect race and sail it.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
Outta Control on a Death Roll
Finally some decent wind! I put work higher on my priority list than sailing today and was an hour late for practice. I should try not to do that again. Somebody needs to set an example for the team. I should show them how to rig faster too.
It was gusty tonight, but not too shifty. We tacked on the whistle for quite some time- Cameron, Dan, and I. I was gaining on them, especially Cameron. Kelsey said that it was because I was tacking smoothly. Dan certainly had me beat on boat speed. I was overpowered and he was wishing he had a full rig. What I need to work on here is remembering to sheet out a little to flatten the boat quickly. Also, when sheeting back in, I tend to want to reach into the boat to grab the sheet. This way I get a good pull in a position where my arms are strong. It is a very bad habit because the boat heels again when I reach in. Not fast. I must work on the overhead pull, maybe in lighter winds to gain strength first.
What goes up must come down.The wind seemed to pick up further for the downwind with some outrageous gusts. This time gybing on the whistle, which, to be honest, scared me. I did the first few successfully. I remembered to do an S turn and steer as the sail comes across. Then on one gybe things got violent. The mainsheet slipped out of my hand. The sheet was tied to the hiking strap but it was too long and the sail went in front of the mast. Fionnlagh rocked wildly, gunwale to gunwale, pitching forward. Death roll. I managed to grab the mainsheet between the cockpit block and the turning block on the boom. I hauled it in and Fionnlagh stopped the Death Roll. I was still wildly out of control. Dan was in front of me Somehow, he came out of his gybe on a reach, and was at about 90 degrees to me. Fionnlagh was surfing straight for Dan. I was trying to regain control but this all happened in a few seconds. After grabbing the mainsheet, the first thing I saw was the port side of Dan's transom and little hope of avoiding a nasty collision. But Fionnlagh came through for me, with his bow leaping into the air, over Dan's rudder. Yes, OVER the rudder. The timing was absolutely perfect. Dan's boat sailed out of the way just in time and his rudder never made contact with Fionnlagh's hull. "Oh my God!" Kelsey was freaking out in the coach boat about how close that was. I had other things to worry about.
You'd think I would learn. A few gybes later, I dropped the mainsheet again. Lucky for Dan he was aft this time. The nearest object was the barge. Wild rolling. At least I was well positioned in the cockpit with inside leg hooked under the hiking strap and outside leg forward with knee bent, facing the boom. Which by this point was waving all over the place. I grabbed the mainsheet and pulled. Wow. No capsize. GUST! Rock and roll. We are surfing! It felt highly unstable. Pull on the rudder. I didn't feel too comfortable heeling to windward to reduce the pull, but it didn't take much. It was very hard to hold. Fionnlagh tended to heel even farther in the gusts, carving through the water. We carried on like this and ran into the bay. I'm not sure I've ever gone that fast on a run. I probably did in Vic, but this felt much wilder.
Kelsey reminded me at the dock that I should take two big pulls going into the gybe and that might smooth things out a bit.
It was gusty tonight, but not too shifty. We tacked on the whistle for quite some time- Cameron, Dan, and I. I was gaining on them, especially Cameron. Kelsey said that it was because I was tacking smoothly. Dan certainly had me beat on boat speed. I was overpowered and he was wishing he had a full rig. What I need to work on here is remembering to sheet out a little to flatten the boat quickly. Also, when sheeting back in, I tend to want to reach into the boat to grab the sheet. This way I get a good pull in a position where my arms are strong. It is a very bad habit because the boat heels again when I reach in. Not fast. I must work on the overhead pull, maybe in lighter winds to gain strength first.
What goes up must come down.The wind seemed to pick up further for the downwind with some outrageous gusts. This time gybing on the whistle, which, to be honest, scared me. I did the first few successfully. I remembered to do an S turn and steer as the sail comes across. Then on one gybe things got violent. The mainsheet slipped out of my hand. The sheet was tied to the hiking strap but it was too long and the sail went in front of the mast. Fionnlagh rocked wildly, gunwale to gunwale, pitching forward. Death roll. I managed to grab the mainsheet between the cockpit block and the turning block on the boom. I hauled it in and Fionnlagh stopped the Death Roll. I was still wildly out of control. Dan was in front of me Somehow, he came out of his gybe on a reach, and was at about 90 degrees to me. Fionnlagh was surfing straight for Dan. I was trying to regain control but this all happened in a few seconds. After grabbing the mainsheet, the first thing I saw was the port side of Dan's transom and little hope of avoiding a nasty collision. But Fionnlagh came through for me, with his bow leaping into the air, over Dan's rudder. Yes, OVER the rudder. The timing was absolutely perfect. Dan's boat sailed out of the way just in time and his rudder never made contact with Fionnlagh's hull. "Oh my God!" Kelsey was freaking out in the coach boat about how close that was. I had other things to worry about.
You'd think I would learn. A few gybes later, I dropped the mainsheet again. Lucky for Dan he was aft this time. The nearest object was the barge. Wild rolling. At least I was well positioned in the cockpit with inside leg hooked under the hiking strap and outside leg forward with knee bent, facing the boom. Which by this point was waving all over the place. I grabbed the mainsheet and pulled. Wow. No capsize. GUST! Rock and roll. We are surfing! It felt highly unstable. Pull on the rudder. I didn't feel too comfortable heeling to windward to reduce the pull, but it didn't take much. It was very hard to hold. Fionnlagh tended to heel even farther in the gusts, carving through the water. We carried on like this and ran into the bay. I'm not sure I've ever gone that fast on a run. I probably did in Vic, but this felt much wilder.
Kelsey reminded me at the dock that I should take two big pulls going into the gybe and that might smooth things out a bit.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Icebreaker Results
Preliminary Regatta Results for Fleet = Laser Radial
Sailed:7, Discards:1, To count:6, Ratings:USPN 96.7, Entries:14, Scoring system:IceBreaker Sailing Instructions
| Rank | SailNo | Helm | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | Total | Nett | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 1st | 189805 | Quinlam, Liam | 1.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 | (9.0) | 1.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 21.0 | 12.0 | ||
| | 2nd | 187302 | Grell, Dominiue | 2.0 | 7.0 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | (12.0) | 36.0 | 24.0 | ||
| | 3rd | 185505 | Stubbs, Robin | 6.0 | 1.0 | 5.0 | (7.0) | 5.0 | 6.0 | 4.0 | 34.0 | 27.0 | ||
| | 4th | 184536 | Harrison, Luke | 9.0 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 1.0 | (11.0) | 9.0 | 1.0 | 40.0 | 29.0 | ||
| | 5th | 182363 | Weldon, Mike | 8.0 | 6.0 | (DNC) | 3.0 | 9.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 44.0 | 29.0 | ||
| | 6th | 187867 | Allen, Elisha | 7.0 | (8.0) | 4.0 | 8.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 8.0 | 42.0 | 34.0 | ||
| | 7th | 1 | Grell, Melanie | 5.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 2.0 | 7.0 | (12.0) | 7.0 | 51.0 | 39.0 | ||
| | 8th | 43587 | Reichenfeld, Lesley | 4.0 | 9.0 | (DNC) | 5.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 | 6.0 | 54.0 | 39.0 | ||
| | 9th | 184626 | Easton, Kate | 3.0 | 4.0 | 10.0 | 4.0 | (13.0) | 10.0 | 10.0 | 54.0 | 41.0 | ||
| | 10th | 185531 | Saunders, Michael | 10.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | (12.0) | 12.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 58.0 | 46.0 | ||
| | 11th | 182382 | Hornett Sarah | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | 10.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 66.0 | 51.0 | ||
| | 12th | 178562 | Lewis, Zoe | 12.0 | (15.0 DNF) | 7.0 | 13.0 | 6.0 | 13.0 | 11.0 | 77.0 | 62.0 | ||
| | 13th | 18 | Kenny, Alexa | 11.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 10.0 | 11.0 | (13.0) | 78.0 | 65.0 | ||
| | 14th | 177419 | Neely, Iain | 13.0 | 12.0 | 9.0 | (14.0) | 14.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | 90.0 | 76.0 |
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Sail into the sunset
Light winds. Practiced roll tacks. Must remember to hold mainsheet at chest level and release slightly when leveling. Rolling was good. Kinda fun to throw my shoulders back and watch for the main sail to start falling. Practiced gybes. I'm terrible at gybing in these really light winds. I need tips.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Head to head with Peter
Get your head in the game. Roll tacks were terrible this morning. I wasn't focussed. I got into it later in the morning as Peter and I sailed up the lake and back to do some speed work.
Keep the blocks in the corner - Peter gained speed in the light winds because his sail was at a better angle. He made sure the blocks were in the corner. As I eased the mainsheet a little to power up, the blocks moved in a couple inches on the traveller. I need to push them back out. Consider a low profile tiller - allows the traveller to be tighter.
Keep the blocks in the corner - Peter gained speed in the light winds because his sail was at a better angle. He made sure the blocks were in the corner. As I eased the mainsheet a little to power up, the blocks moved in a couple inches on the traveller. I need to push them back out. Consider a low profile tiller - allows the traveller to be tighter.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Light, light winds tonight. Late for the start by at least 6 minutes. (52 Port) Passed 2 Bytes (Chris and Elliot). Was catching up to Liz and Kevin, but didn't quite make it. Finished the first race 1 minute behind Liz (4th Radial?).
(4141 Port) Second Race - got a really good start. I sat just behind the line with about 30 seconds to go. At 10 seconds I sheeted in, rolling to leeward and then flattening. The roll could use some work. After we crossed the start, Bill tacked in under me and didn't leave me room to keep clear. I ended up ducking him. I passed on a protest. For the first little while on the upwind, Peter was gradually pulling away. I was neck in neck with Kevin and Lizzie. I pulled ahead before the first mark (#4). I held the lead and built on it on the second trip to mark #1. In the end it was Peter, me, Kevin, Lizzie.
What was the key? Paying attention to the slightest changes in wind. The wind indicator was handy for picking up some serious changes in wind direction. With such light winds, the vane was the only way to tell. Staying still and moving gracefully in the boat (think ballet, may I have this dance, Fionnlagh?). Steering by heeling. Tacking slowly, rolling properly. I did lose some ground on the first leg of the second race because the lifejacket was catching on the mainsheet again. In the lightest air, keeping the sail trim, not baggy. Not pinching on the upwinds. Watching the wind patterns on the lake and using them to decide where to tack. Trying to stay free of the cover of San Juans.
(4141 Port) Second Race - got a really good start. I sat just behind the line with about 30 seconds to go. At 10 seconds I sheeted in, rolling to leeward and then flattening. The roll could use some work. After we crossed the start, Bill tacked in under me and didn't leave me room to keep clear. I ended up ducking him. I passed on a protest. For the first little while on the upwind, Peter was gradually pulling away. I was neck in neck with Kevin and Lizzie. I pulled ahead before the first mark (#4). I held the lead and built on it on the second trip to mark #1. In the end it was Peter, me, Kevin, Lizzie.
What was the key? Paying attention to the slightest changes in wind. The wind indicator was handy for picking up some serious changes in wind direction. With such light winds, the vane was the only way to tell. Staying still and moving gracefully in the boat (think ballet, may I have this dance, Fionnlagh?). Steering by heeling. Tacking slowly, rolling properly. I did lose some ground on the first leg of the second race because the lifejacket was catching on the mainsheet again. In the lightest air, keeping the sail trim, not baggy. Not pinching on the upwinds. Watching the wind patterns on the lake and using them to decide where to tack. Trying to stay free of the cover of San Juans.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
First Wednesday night for the GSC Radial Fleet
I've been getting psyched up for tonight since Monday when I found out who the competition is this year. Lizzie is back but still getting warmed up as this is only her second night on the water this year. New guy Sean is to be watched but no threat at the moment. The big challenge is that ASA Head Coach Peter has moved over from the Fireball fleet into a Radial. Before I knew he was doing this, my goal was to win Wednesday nights. That is still the goal but it will be even more challenging now. Unless Kelsey is right and Peter's "old man moves" hold him back.
First race is 214214. I got off to a great start, neck in neck with Dave and ahead of Bill. Port end was favoured and I crossed on starboard and then tacked onto port. Peter was matching speed with me but seemed to be headed for Mark #3. Maybe he was playing with the idea of not tacking on headers to see where he ended up. Lizze was late crossing. I found out later that Sean capsized a few times after launching and was to cold to continue. Hopefully we'll see him next week.
The first leg was awesome. I was staying ahead of Bill for quite some time (a feat, considering he has a full rig). Dave and Bill both pulled ahead of me at the first mark. I was well ahead of Peter and Lizzie at this point. On the downwind they made up some ground but didn't catch me. I had a good gybe round #1 and then realized that it might have been better not to gybe and sail by the lee instead. Bill was sailing by the lee and Dave was not. It didn't make much difference in their speed. Around #4 I wasn't as quick sheeting in as I should have been. Still as I began the upwind and Peter approached the mark, I had to say "hurry up, Peter!". And hurry up he did.
In the end, Peter beat me in both races. I'd like to say I was a close second, but I was several boat lengths behind. Generally racing better than last year. I lost it tonight blowing tacks in the higher winds. I didn't handle the variable wind strength very well. In the lighter puffs I wasn't quite rolling enough on the tacks. In the heavier gusts I wasn't getting the boat flat fast enough. Several times I was tipped over enough that water was starting to enter the cockpit. Not fast. I need to work on the mental game. I know how to tack in both conditions, but I get messed up when it's variable. Plus with the water being as cold as it is, I'm still a little chicken on the roll tacks.
First race is 214214. I got off to a great start, neck in neck with Dave and ahead of Bill. Port end was favoured and I crossed on starboard and then tacked onto port. Peter was matching speed with me but seemed to be headed for Mark #3. Maybe he was playing with the idea of not tacking on headers to see where he ended up. Lizze was late crossing. I found out later that Sean capsized a few times after launching and was to cold to continue. Hopefully we'll see him next week.
The first leg was awesome. I was staying ahead of Bill for quite some time (a feat, considering he has a full rig). Dave and Bill both pulled ahead of me at the first mark. I was well ahead of Peter and Lizzie at this point. On the downwind they made up some ground but didn't catch me. I had a good gybe round #1 and then realized that it might have been better not to gybe and sail by the lee instead. Bill was sailing by the lee and Dave was not. It didn't make much difference in their speed. Around #4 I wasn't as quick sheeting in as I should have been. Still as I began the upwind and Peter approached the mark, I had to say "hurry up, Peter!". And hurry up he did.
In the end, Peter beat me in both races. I'd like to say I was a close second, but I was several boat lengths behind. Generally racing better than last year. I lost it tonight blowing tacks in the higher winds. I didn't handle the variable wind strength very well. In the lighter puffs I wasn't quite rolling enough on the tacks. In the heavier gusts I wasn't getting the boat flat fast enough. Several times I was tipped over enough that water was starting to enter the cockpit. Not fast. I need to work on the mental game. I know how to tack in both conditions, but I get messed up when it's variable. Plus with the water being as cold as it is, I'm still a little chicken on the roll tacks.
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